I'm Movin' On
by A'isha Ishtar
Summary: "I always felt sorry for the poor girl. After all, I was her only friend. I could only wait for the day that the poor thing would have another friend. I just never thought..." "It would be me?" Jugo/OC, Sui/OC, possible Sui/Ka but don't quote me...
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: ... HEY NARUTO! WOULD YOU GET IN HERE AND DO THE DISCLAIMER THINGY?**

**Naruto: *walks in* Okie-dokie! *takes a deep breath* *yelling* A'ISHA-CHAN DOESN'T OWN NARUTO AND SHE PROBABLY NEVER WILL, _BELIEVE IT_!**

**Me: ... *smacks the side of my head* Charming. I do believe you've killed my sense of hearing. *flicks him on the forehead* NOW GET OUTTA HERE AND GO FIND A CATCH PHRASE THAT DOESN'T SUCK! ^^**

_I'm Movin' On_

_-xxx-_

_by A'isha Ishtar_

Karin had never sensed chakra this low, not even for a civilian. Civilians still had chakra, even though they didn't choose to manifest it. But whoever this was, they were hardly qualified to be a ninja. An Academy Student, perhaps, who had run away during naptime? Brats, all of them...

Her day would have gone about normally if she hadn't caught wind of this impressively low chakra. She would have checked on the prisoners, gotten them whatever they needed. Then she would have reported back to Orochimaru and situated any new prisoners. After that, she would happily assist Kabuto in treating any of the prisoners who were sick or injured. Her day ended after that, because many prisoners would be injured. An alarming number of them got in fights, every day. Even ones that had been in the office the previous day, the ones that she was sure had learned their lesson, would turn up with some cut or bruise, possibly even a broken bone or two. She kept lecturing about their constantly belligerent personalities, giving them what she thought was an intimidating look and a wag of her finger. But it didn't help, they didn't listen to her.

Unfortunately, that wasn't how things were going to go today. She had the extra duty of having to investigate any unauthorized presence on the base's grounds. Low chakra and improbable threat notwithstanding, this person had to be checked.

And so Karin excused herself from Kabuto's "iron grasp", as she called it in her diary. She grabbed her walkie-talkie, which (like all the others) was linked to Orochimaru's, which he had with him at all times. This prompted Kabuto to ask where she was going. Well, his way was more of a, "And what do you intend to accomplish with that, Karin-chan?"

Rolling her eyes at his feigned politeness, she pushed her glasses up. "I sensed a low chakra, right outside. I'm supposed to investigate if I sense anything like that - you know, anything _unusual_."

"Ah..." Kabuto slid his own glasses up; unlike her, he used his middle finger, and hardly anyone ever noticed. She called it _discreetly flipping the world off __since 2007_. He shrugged, leaning back in his chair. "If their chakra is low, they probably aren't a threat. Why bother with them? Wait till nightfall and let the coyotes get whatever _it_ is." A sadistic grin played on his lips as he said that last sentence.

Karin felt her stomach twist in disgust. She may have been a jailer, but she was by no means as heartless as this slimy creature she was forced to call a person. She would prefer it if this person was safely inside as a prisoner, rather than being hurt. "I would rather have them in a cell, even if they're not a threat, than getting killed out there."

Kabuto clicked his tongue at her. "Ah, still soft, I see. Well, after all, you've only been here for three years. You may have learned _something_ here, Karin-chan, but you _still_ don't know _anything_." Swiveling his chair back to his desk, he waved his hand dismissively. "I suppose you can go and make a fool of yourself now. Do let me know if you find anything more than a child who wandered into the wrong place." A sinister, condescending chuckle (not unlike the tone he always used when speaking to her) emanated from him before he continued his paperwork.

Karin glared at his back, and childishly stuck her tongue out, sticking her thumbs in her ears and wiggling her fingers. She did this for a full ten seconds before stomping off out of the office. "Stupid... dickhead... straight from hell... _annoying_ as hell... _stupid_ as hell... gives the entire world the finger and they're too dumb to notice..." She balled her hands into fists as she stalked down the halls, and she realized that feeling: the feeling of wanting to punch the object of your anger in the face. She growled, clenching and unclenching her fists as she tried to calm down. She _wished_ she could punch that smug bastard in the face without getting in trouble. She strapped her walkie-talkie to the waistband on her shorts and took a breath before she stepped outside.

She opened the door and walked out, allowing the wind to hit her face and whip her hair around. She loved going outside; nature was her thing. She flattened herself against the side of the building and began to walk, looking for this source of low chakra. She reached a corner, and peeked around it. Her ruby eyes widened behind her lenses as she saw a person.

To be more precise, it was a young girl. Twelve, maybe thirteen years old? She was small and thin, though, so she could probably pass for eleven. It was hard to accurately predict her age. She was actually kind of pretty - or, she would be, if she were cleaned up. She looked underfed, so she was rather skinny. Her hair was long, but tangled. It was impossible to tell if it was straight or wavy, because of how badly it was knotted up. However, it was a lovely teal color, and her eyes were hazel. Karin actually felt a little sorry for the poor girl; she looked like she was facing her last option.

The girl was just standing there, looking up at the building. She was dressed in a dingy gray gown, made of some kind of what looked like heavy, rough fabric, and her body was covered in dirt. Her face was marred with scratches and was filthy. She kept tugging down on her dress, as if to stretch it and get it away from her body, like it was too tight and was hurting her. All of a sudden, the girl blinked and looked over Karin's way.

Karin sucked in one breath and held it. The girl was looking right at her; what could she possibly want? There was nothing here at Orochimaru's place for a girl like this one.

The girl's eyes brightened, and her lips curved up. She opened her mouth and gave a wide smile to Karin, revealing the only clean thing about her - the mouth full of relatively white teeth. She raised a hand and waved. She looked so happy - like she wanted to be friends?

Karin yanked her walkie-talkie from her waist, feeling a little afraid. Sure, this kid had low chakra... but what else was she capable of? She squeezed one of the buttons. "Lord Orochimaru! Send guards to the outside section, just left of Kabuto's office! Intruder, pre-adolescent! Green hair, brown eyes, dressed in a classic Cinderella outfit. Hurry!"

Static came from the other end once she let go of the button. She got a reply after a few seconds, though. "They're on their way, Karin-chan."

It was less than thirty seconds later that the guards came to take the girl away.


	2. Chapter 2

Karin had to admit, she felt sorry for the turquoise-haired girl. She had been dragged away by the guards, literally kicking and screaming. She pumped her legs violently, her heels coming in smashing contact with the ground and getting more dirt caked on her feet. She waved her arms wildly, actually managing to smack one of the guards in the face, after which he slapped her - hard. She began to cry, clawing at her cheek where his hand had connected with her flesh. Her crying increased in volume, until it became a high-pitched wailing, at such a soaring frequency that it was almost impossible to listen to. Supercharged lungs working at their utmost parameter, the girl howled and screeched, an unintelligible plea for them to let her go. The tears streamed down her cheeks in rivers, staining the dirt.

Karin had watched in mute horror as they grabbed her by the hair and dragged her inside. The nearly inhuman shrieks coming from the teal-haired girl were too much to bear. She covered her ears, squeezing her eyes shut behind her glasses. The curiosity overcame her after several seconds, however, and she opened her eyes to peek at the scene. The guards were bringing the girl in, tugging on her hair and making her shrill in pain. Karin felt a squeeze at her heart as she realized that, had it not been for Orochimaru taking an interest in her, she would have been dragged in that same way. By her hair, getting all filthy, crying and screeching. She almost felt bad that she'd been the one to do that; she called the guards, and now they were hurting this girl.

The last thing she saw before the guards were gone was a glimpse of the girl's eyes. Chocolate orbs bore into her own. They were full of shine, raging with tears. They asked why she had done this. They asked who she was, and if she had a heart. They asked for help.

Karin looked away. Those kind of eyes hurt.

* * *

That girl had been down in the dungeons three days and counting. She'd been given stale bread, Karin knew, but nothing else. No water, nothing nutritious to eat. She knew the girl must be getting weak. The human body could only survive so long without water. She assumed that whatever water would drip down from the ceiling, the girl drank. Or maybe she was just swallowing her own saliva. That would probably work to keep her fairly hydrated, too.

She had to help this girl somehow.

She went when everyone else was asleep. Even Kabuto had retired earlier than usual, glasses on his nightstand. He was blind as a bat without them, she knew. Even if he heard her and woke up, it would take him a minute to get his glasses so he could see. Orochimaru had said goodnight to her before going to sleep in his private quarters. As for the Sound Four and Jugo... she assumed they were all asleep, but she didn't quite have the guts to go into their rooms and check. _Especially_ Jugo's.

She walked down the dungeon steps in bare feet, so she didn't wake anyone with the sound of clunky shinobi sandals. She carried a shallow bowl and a pitcher, nothing else. She was still dressed in her day clothes, but she had tied her hair back into a ponytail so all she had to do before going to bed was get into her pajamas.

When she came to the cell that held the girl, she stopped. She knelt down, and gently banged against the bars - to wake her if she was asleep. "Hello. Hello."

A low growl resounded, and the teal-haired girl leapt at the bars. A furious look burned in her cocoa eyes. "Y-You! Y-You were th-th-the one wh-wh-who got m-m-m-me lo-locked in h-h-h-here!"

Karin leaned back a bit, mildly surprised. "Calm down. I'm sorry about that... do you have a stutter?"

Obviously ashamed, the girl drew back into her cage. "Y-Y-Yes."

It was a little difficult to understand her, but Karin made an effort. "I wanted to ask you... how old are you?"

"Y-You tell m-m-me h-how old y-y-you are f-f-f-first."

"My fifteenth birthday is a week from tomorrow. And you?"

"S-S-Sixteen."

"Sixteen! Uh, w-well, I hope you don't... take this the wrong way or anything, but... you only look like you're twelve!"

The girl grinned. "I-I-I'm hop-ping that w-w-when I'm th-th-th-_thirty_, I'll st-st-still look t-t-t-t-twenty-f-f-f-f-five!" She giggled.

Her giggle was infectious, and Karin laughed too. "Wow, you're actually really funny. Um, well... my name's Karin. What's yours?"

"A-A-A-A-Akaji." **(1)**

"That's such a pretty name. Are you thirsty, Akaji?"

Akaji eyed the pitcher suspiciously. It was rather obvious that she still didn't quite trust Karin.

Karin poured into the small bowl, and passed it to Akaji. "It's just water, I promise. You don't think I would poison you, do you?"

Akaji began to drink, and finished the bowl in about ten seconds. She passed the bowl back to Karin, coughing lightly. "Th-Th-Thank you, K-K-K-K-Karin-chan. M-M-M-More, please?"

"Of course." Karin poured out more of the cold water into the dish, and handed it to Akaji. "Here."

"Mmm-mmm..." Akaji greedily swallowed it as well. "I-I g-guess I was w-w-wrong ab-b-b-bout you, K-K-K-Karin-chan. Y-You're g-g-g-g-good."

Karin blinked a few times before processing what Akaji had just told her. She had been called a lot of things before. Bitch, heartless, coward, "special" (which really meant weird), Four-Eyes, annoying, stupid. But never "good". She smiled at Akaji, adjusted her glasses, and sat down properly right there to spend the rest of the night here. "You're good too, Akaji-chan."

**(1) Akaji = deficit _(Japanese)_**

**I seriously wrote the last paragraph of this in study hall today. It's been sitting in my computer for a while, but I wasn't sure how to end it. So... since it was the period before lunch, and I'm not allowed to eat in study hall... DARN IT... my stomach thought up some inspiration for me, I guess... XD**

**I didn't use to like Karin, but I guess now she's okay. You know... now that she broke down crying and told her past... I guess she's not half bad. Akaji calls her good, at least! Lol.**

**Hope you guys enjoy! Reviews please? |D**

**Karin: ... Desparate much?**

**Me: Shut up, Strawberry... *whacks with a rolled up newspaper and walks off***

**Bye-byes! ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

For a while, Karin was Akaji's only visitor. Orochimaru would come there occasionally, just to make sure Akaji was still alive. As per Orochimaru's request, Kabuto would come at times to sedate Akaji so that he could obtain a sample of her hair or maybe draw some blood, perhaps inject some vitamin he thought she might need or, in some instances, examine her (which really meant poking and prodding and pressing down on her face, arms, legs, and back, not to mention using a stethoscope to monitor her breathing and heart rate). Karin would begrudgingly move to the side as he did, complaining about the fact that he always had to knock her out. She said that she could get Akaji calmed down enough to let him do these things, but he just offered the clever rebuttal of, "I'm your superior. We do it the way I want it or I'll give_ you_ a shot in the ass." Oh how smart.

After a particularly harsh battery of tests and injections, Karin visited Akaji again, to make sure she felt alright. Kabuto only knocked her out because he knew how upset she was by doctors and medical procedures. He'd found that out when he had tried to give her a vaccine against pneumonia and she kicked him in the face before the needle even came in contact with her skin. But once the anesthetic wore off and she woke up, she would be left with the pain or soreness from the process. That was hard on her body, probably due to the fact that she had so little chakra. It was difficult for her to heal herself, so it usually never got done and she ended up getting better gradually, the hard way.

This time, Akaji had been given a shot that tested for tuberculosis, not to mention a whole slew of new vitamins and a syringe full of HPV vaccine administered to her hip. As Kabuto so eloquently put it, "No matter what the disability, girls are sluts and can't control their hormones. And if she gets cervical cancer I'm not healing her, so consider it a precaution."

It had been two days since that, because Karin had been disciplined by Kabuto. She had messed up a diagnosis after one of prisoners came to her sick, so Kabuto decided to punish her by locking her door with a special seal for one night. Apparently he'd figured out that she'd been going to see Akaji during the nights, when she was supposed to be sleeping, and he came to the conclusion that this was why her skills were suffering.

Yeah right. Karin swore that if he did that to her again, _he_ would be the one suffering.

Today Karin brought someone with her. She found that aside from the fact that Akaji was receiving medications that were likely unneccesary, this girl and Kimimaro Kaguya, the boy Orochimaru had once intended for his vessel, had a lot in common. So she had asked him to meet Akaji, and since he wasn't doing anything today he agreed.

Karin had Kimimaro hang back for a moment while she looked into Akaji's cell to check the girl. She peered in and found Akaji lying on the floor in a weak, crumped little heap. Her arms were sprawled out past her head, and her legs were curled up under her backside, and she was lying on her side. She wasn't really sleeping, because her eyes were open, but it looked like she was tired out or in pain. Both, probably, if Karin knew Kabuto.

Karin knelt down in front of the bars and rapped her knuckles gently against one of them. "Akaji-chan? Are you awake?"

Akaji raised her head just slightly, and when she saw Karin her dull eyes brightened up a little. "K-K-Karin-chan!" She pushed herself up off the floor with her hands, grunting a little. She managed to crawl over to where Karin was, sitting in a side-saddle type of position. "M-Morning."

"Morning." Karin reached inside the bars and stroked the top of Akaji's hand, which Akaji had said she liked because it reassured her that even if Karin left she would be coming back. Why she associated it with something like that, Karin wasn't sure. But if it was comforting to Akaji she didn't mind. "Did old Four-Eyes give you breakfast?"

Akaji shook her head, sliding an arm over her stomach. "D-D-Didn't feel g-g-g-good. Not h-hungry."

"I see." With her other hand, which was behind her back, Karin crooked her finger, beckoning Kimimaro to come forward slowly. "Well, I've brought someone who would like to meet you, Akaji. It's a boy and his name is Kimimaro. Would you like to meet him too?"

Absently Akaji's hand drifted to a place near her other elbow, where Karin knew that Kabuto had given her the shot for the TB test. Her fingernails scratched against it lightly for a moment, but she was nodding despite this, not quite seeming to realize that she was doing it. "Yes!"

"Okay. Kimimaro?" Karin turned and saw Kimimaro coming forward, and she smiled. "I'd like to introduce you to Akaji."

Kimimaro got to his knees and reached inside the bars to pull lightly on a lock of Akaji's hair. "It's very nice to meet you, Miss Akaji. My name is Kimimaro Kaguya."

"H-Hi, K-K-K-Kimimaro-kun." She smiled when he touched her hair, and leaned into his touch, as if telling him she wanted him to do it more. "N-Nice to m-m-meet you t-t-t-t-too."

Karin was happy that Akaji was finding a friend in someone so similar to her, but then she noticed something. The more Kimimaro stroked her hair, the more riled up she became and the more her nails raked across the spot where she had been injected with PDD antigen. That was a bad thing, wasn't it... if the injection site started itching? That was bad. "Akaji." She got to her knees and reached inside the bars, taking Akaji's arm. Adjusting her glasses she examined it. Akaji had certainly scratched it, but the redness and swelling definitely wasn't from her scratching it. It had been there before she started digging into her skin.

Karin stood up, terrified for her best - and only - friend. That redness and puffiness was the mark of a positive test for tuberculosis. Was Akaji sick? How had she gotten something like this? Had she had it before she came here, or did she contract it here? But if she'd had it before she came here she would probably be showing symptoms, since the bacteria stayed dormant for a while after someone first caught it and started acting up after a few years.

A million things tumulted through Karin's mind as she looked back and forth from Akaji to Kimimaro. "Kimimaro..." She pointed at Akaji's arm, the red and swollen bump there near the inside of her elbow. "A few days ago, Kabuto injected her with an antigen that would identify whether or not she has tuberculosis. Results start showing within forty-eight hours, and that's a positive reaction."

Kimimaro's eyes visibly widened, and he looked back at Akaji. "Positive...? You mean she..."

"I don't know." Karin looked to Akaji too, and the girl looked completely petrified. She knew exactly what was going on, and she was frightened out of what looked to be several years of her life. Bending down Karin slipped a hand inside the cage and rubbed the top of Akaji's head for a few seconds. "Don't worry, Akaji. I'll get to the bottom of this. If that asshole administered a faulty test..." Karin felt tears pricking at her eyes but she didn't allow them to spill over. If they didn't go over the eyelid, she wasn't crying. "God, I'll kill him if it was his fault!" She straightened up and took a breath. "Kimimaro, stay with her. I'm going to get Kabuto."

She took a few steps down the hallway, and then broke out into a run toward her boss's main office.

Kimimaro reached down into the bars again, and this time he took Akaji's hand. Partially to keep her from scratching again, since that only seemed to be irritating the bump further, and partly because he really felt for her. Being given the news that you had this many years to live wasn't pleasant; and it never would be. He didn't want something like that to happen to someone like Akaji... she was so sweet, so innocent. This couldn't happen. It was too late for him but it couldn't happen to her. "Don't worry, Akaji-chan," he assured her, trying his best to be comforting. "Everything's going to be fine."

But Akaji, childish though she was, wasn't the least bit stupid. She understood what Karin had been talking about, and she comprehended the gravity of the situation before her. She wasn't about to be consoled by words that neither she nor Kimimaro knew were true or not. Her fingers squeezed Kimimaro's tightly as the tears poured down her face and her chest heaved with deep sobs. "I-I-I don't w-w-w-want to d-d-d-d-die, Kimimaro-k-kun! I d-don't w-want to d-d-d-die!"


End file.
